Friday, July 30, 2010

My favourite quick dish of the summer: Harissa-spiked houmous

If there is one dish that I've been making over and over again (apart from fried chantarelle mushrooms in various disguises), it's this quick and spicy version of houmous, the Middle-Eastern chickpea/garbanzo dish. I love the traditional houmous to bits, but sometimes it's nice to play around with your favourites a bit. I've had my fling with a beetroot houmus, and I've been eyeing a roasted pepper houmous recipe for a while now. But first, I need to get tired of this harissa-spiked houmus recipe, and this hasn't happened yet. (If you've got a favourite 'way with houmus', then I'd love to hear about it!)

I use Belazu's Rose Harissa, but any other favourite would work just as well. Suitable for vegetarians, vegans, celiacs as well, so a very handy recipe to have :)

Drain the chickpeas and place to the food processor with the rest of the ingredients. Blend until you've got a smooth paste (or slightly coarse, if that's how you prefer your houmous). Taste for seasoning - if you wish, add some more harissa or lemon juice or salt.
Excellent with toated pita bread, or on a slice of toast, or spread on crispy crostini or as a dipping sauce with some crudités.